Fred Rodgers and Quintessential Jewish Values

Fred Rodgers and Quintessential Jewish Values
Why Does the Media Have to Be So Violent?

Rabbi Gary S. Creditor
February 28, 2003

Judaism isn't big on saints. We refer to the patriarchs, matriarchs and Rabbis of the ages in their humanity, warts and wisdom. The Hebrew word rarely used is Tzaddik, sometimes applied for piety and other times for righteousness. It became popularized in the Chasidic world. That not withstanding, the ordained Presbyterian minister whose soothing voice was our children's first teacher, the calming influence after Bert and Ernie, Mr. Fred Rogers, alav hashalom, was most deserving of the title tzaddik. I made a sermon when "Mr. Rogers Neighborhood" taped its last show. Tonight I reflect on the man and his television show that were the example of quintessential Jewish values. Perhaps because he was a minister, whose education was predicated on the Biblical texts we share, whether he knew it or not (though I am sure that he did), he spoke our language. It is good to review the values that are the matrix of Judaism. But in his memory I will append the following question, which is in truth a plea:

Do you know,
Do you agree,
Do you acquiese
To what TV your children are watching?
To what computer games they are playing?
To what movies they are going?
To what songs they are singing?

Ultimately the message of Fred Rogers' life and work was to challenge us to consider the world we are creating for our children, to the world that we are creating for ourselves. His plea has so far gone unheeded by the mass media and the latest technology has only made it worse and thus more urgent. His legacy will forever be a question:
What have we made of our neighborhood?

Last night I watched ABC's Nightline special about Fred Rogers. With Menachem born in 1975 I remember walking into the house hearing his opening song "It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood…" with Menachem in the swing or playpen and looking at a young Fred Rogers. I think that our television played the majority of his nine hundred shows. And after him, Yonina and then Tzeira were given full doses of "The Neighborhood." It was last night, while watching Nightline that I finally realized the foundation upon which the show was grounded. It was the verse in Leviticus:

"Love thy neighbor as thyself."

The Rabbis decided that this was one of the two foundational verses in the whole Torah. When Hillel was challenged to teach the whole Torah on one foot, this was the verse he cited and then said: Go and study. Without quoting it, because the show was directed for children of every faith, Fred Rogers based his life and work on this verse, and then used the medium of television to show how to apply this religious principle in our lives. Here is a list, certainly not exhaustive, of the Jewish values in "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood."

1. Emet - truth: While being careful to protect our children, his shows never shied away from the hard questions. He was truthful with his young audience and found the right language to convey difficult answers. His characters were always truthful, even when it hurt.

2. Yirah - awe: This is perhaps the most religious word of all. He, as an adult, even while speaking to children, stressed the sense of awe about the world around us, the people in it, and the experiences of even the simple. Awe elevates us to experience God.

3. Rachmanut- kindness: We must remember that the Neighborhood burst upon the scene in the explosion of the "Me Generation" where the "dog-eat-dog" principle was central; where we heard for the phrase "elder abuse" for the first time. In complete contrast, the characters of the neighborhood acted with kindness to each other.

4. Chesed - righteousness: I think every business executive should be sentenced to watch 900 hours of the neighborhood.

5. Chain - charm: I can honestly say that I could only listen to the neighborhood for just so long. But no matter how old I have become, the charm and grace of his person is still epitome of our humanity.

6. Ahavat HaRayah - Loving the other: His show was a pioneer in showing children with handicaps, in wheel chairs, as full human beings. The panorama of characters in gender and race showed that in the core of our life we love others.

7. Ahavat HaBriyot - Loving all living creatures - particularly animals: 

8. Shalvah - tranquility: The Neighborhood was the only show, which I didn't have to reach to lower the volume. There was serenity, even when it tackled terrible events, like the assassination of Robert Kennedy that surrounded you. The noise of today scrambles our brains, clouds our minds, and distracts from that which is core of existence: appreciating existence itself.

9. Kavod - Honor/Respect:

10. Koach Penimi - Inner power and potential: Continuously Fred Rogers encouraged his viewers to appreciate the power they have, we have, within ourselves, to reach for the stars to fulfill our potential. He stressed that this was so much more important than how much money we made.

11. Shalaymut - Completeness:

12. Shalom - Peace:

I imagine that "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood" is one version of the Jewish ideal of the Messianic age. In that vision birth and death continue just as we live today. Yet it is a time of love and mutual respect, where each person's innate holiness is honored, and peace is primary and violence abolished, where there is no such thing as predator and prey. It's the "virtual reality" of the Garden of Eden. Using puppets and props, Fred Rogers transposed the Biblical verse of "the lion lying down with lamb and little child to lead them" into scenarios that we and our children could understand and with which we and they could identify.

All of this was united in one vision of a potentially beautiful world, created by a loving God - a word he never used on the show - whose greatness was reflected in every human being, every animal, and every tree and bird. His show transposed the poetry of the Psalmist into a calming, inspiring and transformational television show. We learned that with our differences, we are all neighbors in the galaxy of existence.

May generations of children come to be taught through the prism of reruns so that a full measure of immortality is bestowed upon Fred Rogers.

May this perpetuation of his life and work be a continued blessing to generations yet to come as it has been to us.

May we always hear his challenge and respond by making this a better world, for us and our children.